OPERATION BABYLIFT Screens Twice in the Windy City

The film makes its city premiere at the 15th Annual FAAIM Chicago Asian American Showcase, screening at 3:15 pm on Sunday, April 11th at the Gene Siskel Film Center, located at 164 N. State Street in Downtown.

“Operation Babylift” was a $2 million U.S. initiative that airlifted over 2,500 Vietnamese orphans out of a war-torn country to protect them from the impending threat of the Communist Regime. Even with the best intentions, these adoptees grew up facing a unique set of challenges in America, including prejudice overshadowed by a controversial war and cultural identity crisis. Nearly thirty five years later, this documentary takes a candid look at a significant, yet untold event as seen through the eyes of the volunteers, parents, and organizations directly involved, and features compelling and insightful interviews from a cross-section of adoptees and Babylift volunteers.

Film festival director, Tim Hugh, notes how this year’s festival features three films on adoption told from unique and different perspectives. Operation Babylift is a contemporary look at Babylift and its relevance to international adoption today through the eyes of the adoptees themselves. “We’re pleased to be able to present Operation Babylift to the Chicagoland area, not just for the Vietnamese community, but also to help educate our other communities and people to the struggles, and the rich, complex stories the Vietnamese in America have,” said Hugh.

Operation Babylift has an encore showing the following weekend at 5:30 pm on Saturday, April 17th, sponsored by the Loyola VASA and API Committees and co-sponsored by FCVN Chicago. The free admission community screening takes place at Loyola’s Lake Shore campus in the Simpson Living-Learning Center , located at 6333 N. Winthrop Avenue. Filmmaker Tammy Nguyen Lee and cast member/adoptee Jared Rehberg will be in attendance for the Q&A following the screening.